children. we want them to live in a loving, caring and committed home that is protected equally under the law. >> hundreds of gay rights supporters were on hand at the statehouse today for the bill signing ceremony. they erupted into applause as soon as the bill was signed. the celebrating might not last long. opponents are promising to make gay marriage a referendum on the ballot in november and most polls show that marylanders are split pretty evenly on the issue of gay marriage. so keep in mind this battle is far from over. >> matt, polls show the same thing across the country. so it will be a battle. thanks. right now eight states and the district do allow same sex couples to get married, but licenses are not available in maryland and washington state yet because both states may have referendums on the issue come november as we just heard. five other states do allow civil unions and then there is california where the fate of

proposition 8 is still in limbo. that measure eliminates the rights of same sex couples to get married. in the midst of what some describe as a recent political war on women from richmond to capitol hill they are logging a victory tonight in the senate. randall pinkston has our update on the battle over contraceptive coverage. >> reporter: the proposal was the latest effort by proponents of president obama's healthcare reform law. democrats say if the amendment passed it would have allowed insurers and employers a way to avoid paying for a lot of healthcare coverage. >> the motion to table is agreed. >> reporter: the senate's vote keeps the birth control coverage requirement in president obama's healthcare reform law. lawmakers rejected a gop proposal that would have given employers and insurers the option of refusing to pay for birth control and other medical coverage if they object on religious or moral grounds. >> if you are of a faith that believes that something is

absolutely wrong as an employer, why would you want to pay thor that? >> reporter: but democrats -- pay for that? >> reporter: but democrats claim the amendment would allow insurers to exclude almost any medical coverage. >> now mr. blunt is giving the insurance company a way to say oh, we really feel sorry that you have cancer. we're really sad that you have diabetes. we're really torn apart that you might have a struck, but we have a moral objection. >> reporter: the vote was not entirely along party lines. one republican, retiring olympia snowe of main voted against the proposal. three -- of maine voted against the proposal. three democrats voted for it. >> this issue will not go way unless the administration decides to take it away by giving people of faith these first amendment protections. >> we will make sure that women across the country are aware of what the republicans in the senate propose to do. >> reporter: a recent cbs news, new york times poll found

61% of americans support requiring employers and insurance companies to cover the costs of contraception. senator blunt who sponsored the amendment says the debate is not over and he predicts ultimately the issue may be settled in the u.s. supreme court. in washington randall pinkston. back to you. now we move on to virginia tonight. that bill mandating external ultrasound exams before a woman can get an abortion is on its way to the governor's desk and bob mcdonnell said he will sign it. we also told you yesterday virginia lawmakers would have to act fast for any hope of signing a budget bill before adjourning. yesterday the senate rejected the only budget bill that was working its way through the general assembly, so today the house quickly introduced another one. it could go to the house floor tomorrow and the senate on monday. university of maryland police say they have caught the man who burglarized a dorm room and sexually assaulted a female

student. 28-year-old oluwafemi charles was apprehended. investigators say he touched the victim inappropriately while he was inside the room. timothy bundy may have attacked more women than any orb rapist in maryland history -- other rapist in maryland history. today more than three decades later a montgomery county judge sentenced buzz by to three more life -- busby to three more life sentences. >> i'm the 18-year-old lifeguard that you raped. >> reporter: justice delayed but not denied. four courageous women confronted timothy busby at his sentencing in a montgomery county courtroom. >> the rape at the hands of timothy busby helped to kill off the person that i was supposed to be. >> reporter: judge nelson rob looked right at busby and this said to him.

you are an evil sexual predator, the intent of the life sentences is that you never ever go free. >> we know he's a repeat sexual offender who preyed upon young women in his county over a period of what now looks like six or seven years. >> reporter: he was known as the aspen hill rapist. he was already serving two concurrent life sentences after admitting raping a dozen women, but he was eligible for parole when new dna tests on old evidence tied him to five more attacks. >> i didn't come here and didn't expect any magical healing. that's a lifelong process, but i hope i'm not done. >> reporter: cold case did not actives suspect busby attacked -- detectives suspect busby attacked at least 24 women from rockville to privilege spring. he kidnapped and raped -- silver spring. he kidnapped and raped a sister

of a woman who testimony against him and returned later too rape her, but what is -- to rape her, but what is remarkable are the women who survived the attacks. >> that guy doesn't define me. he didn't and he doesn't. >> busby told the judge he knows the pain he's caused and that he is truly sorry. the prosecutors are not sure that busby is actually sorry, but he knows for certain he has not been rehabilitated. the man police call the east coast rapist was found competent to stand trial today. aaron thomas appeared in a prince william county courtroom and prosecutors say thomas committed a string of rapes and other attacks on women, 17 of them, from virginia to connecticut, the most prent attack took place in woodbridge, halloween -- most recent attack took place in woodbridge, halloween, 2009. new information about the accident involving a bicyclist and flatbed truck that happened tuesday. this was at 11th and u streets northwest. we learned that this cyclist is

being ticketed for running a red light. he was taken to the hospital, but he is expected to make a full recovery. coming up tonight at 7:00 on 9 news now a wisconsin state senator believes being a single parent contributes to child neglect and abuse. we'll have details on a controversial bill he's authored tonight at 7:00. still to come what will our unusually balm yearn mean for those cherry blossoms that we're all wait -- balmy winter mean for those cherry blossoms that we're all waiting to see? >> the air today certainly had to accelerate the process somewhat. it came in like a lamb, didn't it? 70 and 51, average is 51 and 33. so our low of our average high. we're not close to a record, record high 80, record low 13. we will come back and talk about the possibility of more thunderstorms and we have some snowflakes on the seven had --

on the seven-day. we'll explain.

good news about the job market tonight as the number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell to its lowest point in four years. the department of labor says 351,000 people applied for unemployment aid last week. it's down about 2,000 from the week before. we also saw another dip in mortgage rate this week. freddie mac says the average rate on a 30 year fixed mortgage now stands at 3.9%, just above the record low of 3.87% we hit two weeks ago. more violent weather could be headed to parts of the midwest and south already ravaged by tornadoes in the last two days. skies were sunny in harrisburg as people scrambled to clean up what they coof the damage. six people died in that southern illinois -- could of

the damage. six people died in that zorn illinois town when an ef4 twister hit. another series of storms could hit that region overnight. ahead students ban together as one of their classmates learns if he'll face charges in a deadly shooting at their school.

sign of solidarity today at the ohio school where five students were shot earlier in the week. hundreds of kids marched to chardon high school this morning. they held hands. some cried as they walked from the town's main square and many wore their school colors plaque and red. once they arrived at the -- black and red. once they arrived at the school they sang its alma mater. then the family of some of the victims made a plea to kids across the nation. >> if you're friends or someone you're friends with on any social media networks and you see something that doesn't look right, tell your mom and dad.

tell the police. tell a counselor. tell a principal. tell a neighbor. tell a friend. just tell somebody. >> ron palmer's nephew danny is one of the three students killed in monday's shooting. two others were injured. late this afternoon prosecutors charged 17-year-old t.j. lane with three counts of murder as a juvenile. police in leesburg say a middle school student's actions might have prevented a dangerous situation at school there. they say a simpson middle school student told his parents a fellow student was considering an act of violence. police were contacted and immediately started an investigation. officers say the student in question was in need of a psychiatrist. that child was taken for a mental health evaluation after the investigators contacted his parents. >> by that early intervention, by him speaking up and saying something to his parent and getting us involved, we were able to identify the child, talk to him and his parents and

get the child some help and services that he needed. >> anybody with additional information about this case is still being asked to call leesburg police. a smartphone is being blamed for a stupid mistake that locked down two schools in georgia. it happened yesterday in atlanta. a college student texted a friend he was going to be at west hall, but the on correct feature on that smartphone didn't like the word gonna and then it changed it to gunman and the student misdialed and sent the text to the wrong person and the western called 911 and it -- and the person called 911 and it all went downhill from there. the dominion law prevents schools from opening before labor day without restriction.

the tourist industry argues it needs students all summer and through the big labor day weekend. this year the city is launching its improved residential sweeping program which includes some new routes aimed at ensuring streets get cleaned more regularly. parking enforcement along street sweeping routes begins march 12th. another sign of spring in the nation's capital, the cherry blossoms. we're all waiting and today we learn how the city plans to celebrate the 100th anniversary of this gift of trees. >> reporter: i'm kristin fisher on the tidal basin where the national park service has just released its blooming forecast for the cherry blossoms and thanks to this nice warm weather these buds are blooming early. >> there's been a lot of speculation about the warm weather and that speculation is correct. >> reporter: rob defayo has been been predicting the cherry blossoms peak blume the last 20 years. >> i've been right 16 out of 20

years of. >> reporter: with that kind of record people pay close attention to his annual forecast. >> going to be sometime between march 24th and march 31st. >> reporter: it's the first time in his entire career that his peak bloom prediction hasn't gone into april. i also the first time the festival has been expanded six weeks all because this year is special. it marks 100 years since the first planting of the japanese cherry trees on the tidal basin. >> who would have thought 1912 would have happened, a gift of friendship would have endured such things as pearl harbor and hiroshima and we're still enduring that friendship today? >> reporter: in washington kristin fisher, 9 news now. >> i never get tired of looking at them. >> no one does. >> it's just too nice and the best way to do it, bike,man. here's the deal. let's put things in perspective and talk about the festival and why you think it's going -- and i think it's going to be closer to the 24th or the 25th. here's the deal, though. in terms of averages, first the

estimate again is march 24th to the 31st. average is early april, the 4th and 5th. the festival now runs like forever, march 20th, it does, until april 27th and the main enemy is wind, okay? we've had years where we've had peak blossoms that have lasted 17 days. so if it doesn't get too hot or too cold, at least too hot and/or windy, we're in pretty good shape. here's our live weather cam by michael and son. there's the white house. temperatures have slipped below 60 even downtown, wow, that's tough, isn't it? it's 59 now, winds out of the north 14. they'll settle down later on and the pressure is rising 29.87 inches of mercury. a little drier air moving in. 18 to 29 days in february we're 50 degrees or warmer. if you thought february was warm, you are correct. fourth warmest february on record.

the third warmest december, january and february combined which is meteorological winter. that's the third warmest and, of course, we did mention this last week, i believe, 2 inches of snow downtown is the third least snow on record. that it's not much of a winter really. temperatures in the 50s now pretty much everywhere, the compensation fort belvoir 51, 56 bethesda and rockville, 59 college park, 57 beltsville. to the west 57 reston, 58 sterling, 63 in manassas. that just seems to run on the high decide and 54 in leesburg. so mild -- high side and 54 in leesburg. so mild and warm. dry morning commute tomorrow, may not be as lucky in the evening and cooler but mild friday. wet friday night and saturday morning. we might see some thunderstorms friday night and saturday. clear to partly cloudy, colder tonight, just a one blanket night, 36 to 44, winds settling down becoming northwesterly at 10. we're talking 30s and 40s

tonight. 43 downtown, but 38 in rockville, 37 gaithersburg and 38 in reston. tomorrow morning we start out dry, pac and chilly, temperatures in the -- d.c. and chilly, temperatures in the 30s and 40s and winds easterly at 10, high temperatures 55 to 60, winds east, southeasterly at 10 to 15. next seven days we'll combine a lot of different weather. on saturday thunderstorms maybe ending around noon and colder sunday, maybe a pressure before i or snow shower and then on monday maybe a -- maybe a flurry or a snow shower and then on monday maybe a flurry. no nonsense at the wizards. >> when you're sitting at seven wins all season, you got to do something to get these guys kind of riled up and get them playing well again. after being benched javale mcgee said he doesn't get the message that coach is trying to send. today coach tried to explain his decision. plus a lady terp received a

very rare honor. sports is next.

now 9 sports with kristen berset, the best sports in

town. wizards head coach randy whitman doesn't coddle his players. instead he benches them, sometimes for an entire half when they make dumb mistakes, when they showboat or basically pick up unnecessary fouls. in tuesday's game whitman benched javale mcgee, nick young and trevor booker to start the 2nd half. mcgee never saw another minute that night. last night young and mcgee lost their starting jobs. whitman scoffs when he asked if he's trying to send them a message. >> i don't know where all of a sudden i'm sending messages. i'm coaching. that's what i'm doing. they know where they stand and what i expect of them. so there's no message. university of maryland sophomore alyssa thomas has been named acc player of the year. the lady terp is just the second sophomore in the league to ever receive this honor.

the other was duke's solana beard. alyssa averaging 17 points a game. the caa quarterfinal, 2nd half bowie state byron westmoreland with a miss but gets his own rebound and the putback, 20-10 for westmoreland and bowie state wins 72-68. if you just tuned into the caps season, you would think al ovechkin is having another great year, but if you've been following them all season, you would know that that isn't the case. he's been called out for acting too much like a rock star and is on the lowest goal total of his career, but gm george mcfear earlier this -- mcfee said earlier this week ovie is close to being a big time goal scorer once again. >> he's this far off from being a 50 goal guy again. every athlete has a stretch in their career where the year

isn't as good as their other years. you can't have a great year every year. i like the way he's going now. >> adam laroche says he expects to play in sunday's spring training game. the first baseman has a sprained ankle which he injured tuesday and an offseason shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum that severely limited his production last season. one for the record books, former cal bears quarterback joel iube threw a paper airplane 226 feet and look at that thing just soar. that is a new world record. i guess it helps to be a cornerback. the previous record was 207 feet. that thing just flies. >> we're ready, though. we're ready to take it on. >> all right, go. >> oh, i remember this one. nice, anita. >> nice job. >> as expected. >> you're trying to impress

with your paper airplanes. >> not at all. thanks for being with us tonight. good night, everybody.